Interesting, that's for sure. I don't think I've seen a modern day founders fanfiction, so this caught my attention.

Something that bugged me , however, was how you used 'word', instead of "word". Also, it sounded simi awkward when you didn't use many contractions, all the it is instead of it's. I don't know, that's always just looked strange to me, but maybe it's just personal preference.

Besides it seeming just a bit coincidental, it looks like it'll turn out pretty interesting, but watch that you keep a steady pace and don't rush. Fix just a few things and it'll be amazing. :)

I don't know how I haven't reviewed this before, because I should have done. It's great :) The way you took the AU/hitchhiking prompt is nothing more than inspired, because it's so much more than just the prompt!

I really like the amount of detail you put into your characterisation and your concept - I don't think I've ever seen a modern day story where the magical and muggle worlds aren't separated. Fantastic idea, and it's handled really well. I loved how Salazar answered his phone; and your entire take on Godric is really really funny, but at the same time, wouldn't be at all out of place in canon. Same for all four of them, actually.

The bits of canon/factual information you put in are just - HOW DO YOU GET THESE IDEAS!!! The name Hogwarts being thought up by a drunk Godric. The reference to the London Olympics. Salazar and Godric being flatmates like other young twenty-somethings. You've seamlessly managed to integrate the two worlds, and it is fantastic.

And you've humanised the Founders! Even though you just give the reader a snapshot of their lives, they are so well rounded: witty and relatable, and just great. (At this point, I'm trying hard to find new adjectives to use, as I seem to be running out of superlatives! TOO GOOD FOR WORDS)

In short, the best take on the Founders I've seen in a very long time :) Have you ever considered writing more about them? Because you really should :) I WANT MORE! :p

And now I'm going to sign off before I really start being rambly and incoherent :p :)

Celi xxx

Author's Response: Celi!

Ahh thank you so much for this review. You have no idea how many times it has lifted my spirits. I'm so sorry for taking so long to respond and only hope you can forgive me. I've been rather absent while exams were running. But my last one was on Thursday so now I can shower you with thanks and love ♥

I'm really pleased that you liked this story. I am actually amazed simply because AU is generally disliked, but I have only had one 'bad' review on the story to date.

You liked them! I'm so pleased. The Founders in modern day were so much fun to write. You know what, you've made me want to write more of them. Do you have any prompts for me? What would you want me to write about? (If you don't, it's fine. I'll figure something out eventually ;) )

Thank you, thank you so much. Right now this really means a lot to me. This is my favourite review ever ♥ :)

This is such a unique and creative idea! I am usually not one for AUs, but this one seems to work out really well. You have managed to make four incredibly quirky people, retaining the primary characteristics JK Rowling mentioned while adding your own as well.

Godric is hilarious, really, with his carefree and playful ways. He does not come across as particularly brave here (I am sure that is because the story is just starting out) but he sure is chivalrous. And the sheer cheek of him to ask out a woman he has never met before! I love his one liner in the end, the 'I have all my best ideas when I'm drunk' because it is such a classic one liner that sums up the character entirely!

I think it is interesting how you make Rowena that one to get fired from her job, simply because as the brightest witch of the century, I would have expected the Minister to love her. Again, you nicely down played the intelligence (so that she is not some insufferable know-it-all) and emphasised the creativity.

Helga is just a darling, with the whole chatty, speaks-what-she-thinks vibe really going for her. Most people who write Founders fics make her out to be this mother hen who rarely has anything impactful to say, only placating everyone. It is so refreshing to see her portrayed as this street smart, clever girl.

Salazar is my favourite of the lot, to be honest, with his rational mind and him being the perfect balance to Godric's wildness. The use of nicknames subtlety underscored the modernity of the story, which I really loved. The whole relationship going to the dogs bit made me sigh a bit. It is also interesting that you made Salazar get cheated on when I would have expected the opposite. For someone so ambitious and cunning, it's nice to know that even Salazar Slytherin is susceptible to the power of love.

The writing style is fantastic, jumping between different perspectives to really make the reader focus. Everything just flowed so well. I am so glad I clicked on this story and I really hope that you update it soon!

Merry Christmas!
Your Secret Santa

Author's Response: Hi Santa! *wave*

Thank you very much for such an amazing review! I want to know who you are so that I may maul you with hugs and thanks.

If AU's aren't really your thing then I am very pleased you enjoyed it! I hadn't planned for this to become anything more than a one shot, but perhaps one day it might.

Godric really kinda wrote himself. He just sorta popped into my head and started speaking, telling me what he thought about the story. I'm glad you liked the way I portrayed him.

Rowena getting fired was not planned. But Godric was distracting me and suddenly he was in her scene, making her later than she already was and chatting her up o_O

Ha ha, Helga does usually get chucked into the box of 'older mother figure'. I'm glad you liked the change.

Sal is my baby. He is far too adorable and he doesn't get enough credit for his good traits. I figure that something or someone has to be behind his distrust of people, and the main potential reason was that someone had played with him and broken his heart badly.

My aim by writing each of them like this was to hopefully put across the fact that the stereotypes that appear with each house are exactly that - stereotypes. By focusing on the way Helga makes the most of life, that Rowena is imaginiative, that Ric is chivalrous, and Salazar has big ambitions.

Ah, I cannot thank you enough. But I really appreciate this super awesome review! (And I'm sorry if I've waffled on too much)

So, I was looking through your author page and this one caught my eye. It sounded like such an interesting premise. And it was. The Founders in a modern day setting--I had never read anything like that. And it was really interesting and fun-zy. Bah! The founder of Gryffindor house would come up with the idea while drunk. Hogsnorts. *snicker*

“Plus he now knew that she knew a lot about animals and wouldn't mind his pets”
--Oh? Like your giant flippin’ basilisk? I loved that line. It was funny, the way you slip it in so casually.

“Sal” and “Ric”? I am dying. That is great. I’m just envisioning that intense-looking portrait of Salazar Slytherin. “Sal”. Bahahaha.

***
CC:

"Perhaps he wasn't drunk at all."
--I think you mean, “Perhaps he was drunk, after all.”

“metamorphases”
--Metamorphmagi?

"Wow. She was a b* even when we were kids.“
--this seemed a little OoC. Not that we ever meet Helga in the books, but from the founder of Hufflepuff house, it was a bit jarring. Especially since there isn’t a lot of time in which to develop her character. In a longer fic, I wouldn’t see any need to stick to the archetype of the "sunny, nice Hufflepuff", but in something this short, I’d suggest softening the line a bit.
***

This was a really cool idea, and I enjoyed all the little jokes. It made me smile :D

Thanks for swapping with me!

--Penny

Author's Response: Hi Penny!
I'm sorry for the late reply, I don't really have an excuse other than I didn't know quite how to respond to such an amazing review. Seriously, you have outdone yourself here.
I love Godric. He was really fun to write, especially as he seemed to almost write himself. I had him in my head telling me 'No, don't write about the rest of them. I want to know what happens to me. Lottie! I wasn't that drunk.'
There are so many parts of the story that you've managed to see exactly as I'd hoped. I wasn't sure if anyone would pick up on Sal's 'pets' so you've made me really happy by noticing *hugs* imagine trying to hide a basilisk in London? You'd just hear of maintenance workers in the sewers claiming that there are giant snakes in the tunnels beneath the city, and the wizards running round obliviating them :')
I'm afraid I sometimes make up words and forget to change them. So I shall apologise to any metaporphmagi I see for not doing my research properly. And I'll change the text, along with those other points. Thank you :) Helga shall be very cheery once I've sorted that out, I really appreciate your feedback.
Thank you once again,
Lottie

Here for our swap! Wow, the description of this one totally caught my eye. AU with the Founders in present day? Whattt? Had to read it. :D

The premise of this is so silly, yet I really like how you wrote the characters and maintained their canon personalities in these totally different settings. Godric seems a bit full of himself, I can see Rowena's intelligence and vanity, Helga's free-spiritedness (and her grinning at birds made me laugh), and Salazar thinking all the people around him are idiots. So funny, but I can totally see them being those sort of people in the modern day :p

I love how they all became friends in this wacky, random way - Godric coming up with brilliant ideas while drunk, and then making friends over the phone while Helga was hitchhiking with Salazar. Ps, the idea that Salazar would get tricked into picking up a hitchhiker makes me laugh. I can see him being so grumpy about the whole thing XD

Basically, this was a really amusing little story and even though it's super AU, the personalities of the characters are really well done and adhere to their canon personalities (or at least how I imagine them to be), just without all the stuffy Middle Ages dialogue :p Great job - this was an enjoyable read! Thanks for the swap!

Author's Response: Thank you off that fantastic review! I'm so glad you liked it.
I really enjoyed writing this, so I love that you interpreted the characters so well. I'm glad they were in line with their personalities: I was a little worried about this since I had never written Founders before, and the characters were present day versions of themselves. I did love them, I'm glad you did too :)
Haha, thank you very much!
Lottie

This is Gabbie from the forums with your review and I'm sorry that this is a tad late. I don't know what's going on with my RL but its really getting on my nerves. How dare it take me away from my fanfics!

Anyway, on to this! Ah, this is such a unique idea and I really love it! This is only a one-shot, yes? I am disappointed. I don't read much Founders and I'm a fan of AU so I was really stunned by how you effortlessly blended the two. I don't think that I've read anything like it before!

So, I love what you've done with each character and their introductions. Godric just made my day today, he was hilarious and I think that having brilliant ideas while drunk is amazing and he should never be ashamed. I like that you alternated the POV in the story too so that we could get a clear idea of who was who and how they were feeling. Oddly enough, they were all thinking similar things about building Hogwarts and their differences were really well-written. I'm not sure who I enjoyed more but they were all so quirky and odd in their own way and even Salazar, who was a bit uptight was a tad unusual in his own way. Hahahah. I do like that you're shipping him and Helga though, that's something that I don't hear happening all the time and I think Rowena and Godric are perfect together. I wish that this was longer but, alas, all good things must come to an end. :(

I didn't spot any CC's and I think that your pacing and characters were excellent! :D

Much love,

Gabbie

Author's Response: Gabbie!
Thank you so much for such a lovely review. You have honestly made my day, I can't seem to stop grinning.
I'm glad you liked my interpretation of all the characters. Godric was fun to write, he is very loosely based on one of my OC's for a story I am planning, so I'm glad you liked him. He says thank you very much for appreciating his moments of genius. ;)
I loved Salazar. I don't think he is as 'evil' as he is often made out to be, but I do picture him as very ambitious. Helga seemed so carefree that I had to pair them together. You can get very far in life with ambition and a cup of tea beside you. Rowena is a calming influence for the boisterous Godric, and I love them together.
Again, thank you so much! I'm really glad you enjoyed it.
Lottie

Hi Lottie! I love this idea, retelling the Founders' story in modern-day time, and your characterisation is perfection. I love how Rowena works extremely hard and is climbing up the political ladder, Salazar has his eyes on becoming the top Healer in the world (though I think the jobs of these two would be best switched, but then again that's just me), Godric's a rowdy boy who's got a sense of chivalry and a love of drinking, and Helga's a free spirit. It's just so interesting! I hope you might write a follow-up for this, you captured everything impeccably.

Thanks for the review swap!

-Meena

Author's Response: Hiya Meena, thank you for you input!
I'm glad you liked it, and thank you for the compliments. I do understand where you are coming from with the jobs, but I shall try to explain my reasoning. Rowena is intelligent, Salazar is ambitious. Unless he were to become minister then Salazar would most likely be forgotten amidst everyone else. By becoming a healer, many more people would remember his legacy. Rowena works more in the here and now, with the idea of preserving knowledge rather than herself, which she can do at the ministry. Especially given all the languages she speaks, she can communicate and share ideas and information with a great many people. They won't remember her necessarily, but they would remember what she says.
It was fantastic to see that you'd summarised everyone perfectly, exactly as I'd hoped they would come across. Thank you so much!
Lottie